A Different Kind of Dark Lord
by celticfox
Summary: A year after Silver on the Tree, Will Stanton discovers a different kind of dark lord who calls himself Lord Voldemort. FIRST REVISED CHAPTER NOW UP.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I've ignored this fic for far too long, so here is the first revised chapter. I think it's a lot better than the original, and hopefully you will too. It's kind of like a prologue. Please review and tell me what you think. I own neither Dark is Rising or Harry Potter.**

* * *

_Fight. The sounds of battle, screams and cries and crashes as fatal curses soared through the dark. The rising adrenaline that overwhelmed the mind, taking over, turning him into a brutal, vicious fighting machine with no room for thought, only reflex. The beast is there too, a roaring voice telling him to protect the pack, the beast-that-is-him-yet-not-him. Ducking as death flew past on swift wings, and tripping over the body of one of the fallen, the face familiar, a former friend. But grief is for later; there is nothing but the fight._

_He pushes sweat-soaked dark hair out of his eyes and fires a beam of red light across the courtyard. The air is dark and smoky, vision hazy; he has no idea whether he hit his target or not. A slashing spell catches his side and fresh pain blossoms, but the beast roars and feeds him new strength. Anger and determination, and suicidal recklessness in battle; they have made him one of the most feared warriors in this war of wizardry. Sometimes he thinks they come from the beast, but they stop his knees from buckling, let him leap over the victims and throw himself once more into the fray. _

_Blood-cousin is killing many, madness plain in her beautiful eyes. Raises wand at pack-brother. He snarls and fires a curse she dodges with ease. Taunting. Why, cousin, can't you do any better?..._

_All around, people fight. He levels his wand and makes for blood-cousin. The beast growls with blood-lust. Kill, kill, kill... the man might just give in. "Conjunctivo!"_

_She parries it; she is at least as skilled as him, probably better; after all she is the Enemy's chief lieutenant. She smiles and raises her wand. Says a word. The tiles in front of his feet explode with force and he is hurled bodily across the courtyard, slamming against the wall with a sickening crunch and sliding painfully down. His wand is jerked from his hand to go skidding across the flagstones. The beast whimpers..._

_Blood-cousin approaches, taking her time, knowing he cannot escape. She is a cat and loves to play with her prey. His vision is blurry but he makes a hopeless attempt for his wand. She points her own at him. A slender stick of wood. Her lips part._

_"Avada Kedavra," she says cruelly, and there is a flash of green light and a cry and the boy-who-is-not-a-boy and a force pushing him out of the way and a swish of air as someone Disapparates and he's looking up into pack-brother's face. _

_"What?_ Why am I alive?" he asks, confused, the beast subsiding for now. James' brown eyes are full of concern; his glasses have slipped off his nose.

"The battle's over, Padfoot," he says. "No-" he stops Sirius from getting up- "you lie down. You've been badly hit by a slicing curse. You may have to go to St. Mungo's."

"But-" the pain is making his head go fuzzy- "she said the Killing Curse- I should be dead-"

James' face goes strange. "Will."

Sirius jerks to his feet. The blood rushes from his head, making him sway dizzily. He blinks until his vision clears. There is no more fighting in the courtyard, just members of the Order tending to wounded friends and binding captured Death Eaters. His gaze is drawn to to a small body a few feet away, a boy no more than fourteen, his blank grey eyes wide and glazed from the Killing Curse. "What? He's _dead? _But-"

The pathetic body convulses, and starts to breathe again. The boy blinks and sits up, his brown hair falling haphazardly around his face. He winces. "Ow. Remind me not to do that again. Stupid."

Sirius feels his knees go weak from relief. He falls to the ground next to the boy. "You saved my life."

The boy waves a hand irritably. "It's nothing. What any friend would have done." Large eyes sparkle with laughter. "Well, maybe not just _any_friend. I suppose I'm a special case."

"You certainly are, young sprout," James laughs, sitting down next to them. "You must be the first human ever to survive the Killing Curse."

"Well, not exactly _survive,_" Will corrects him. Eyes glint in a strangely disturbing way. "And I'm not exactly _human, _either."

Sirius shivers. Sometimes he wonders if this is truly friendship, when one is so afraid of the other. But the boy has saved his life, and he should be grateful. "My thanks, again."

Dorcas comes up to them, businesslike, her steel gray hair tied back in a strict bob. Many times, she reminds Sirius of his strict Transfiguration teacher and Head of House, Minerva Mcgonagal. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," James says with concern, "but Sirius needs medical help, soon."

"I'm telling you, I'm perfectly all right," Sirius insists, although the world is spinning gently and his back feels like it's broken. He can't even feel his side anymore, and that's probably a good thing, considering the look on James' face when he saw it. "How are everyone else?" He leans against the scorched, blackened wall.

She sighs, grief plain on her face. "Five injuries, and... one fatality."

"No," James gasps. "...who?..."

Sirius chants his inner mantra, an inner prayer he always says at times like these._Please let it not be Remus. Please let it not be Peter. Please let it not be Lily. Please let it not be Dumbledore. Please let it not be Arthur, or the Prewetts, or Elphias, or Caradoc, or Edgar, or Marlene or the Longbottoms or Emmeline..._

"Benjy Fenwick," Dorcas says heavily.

"No!" James says, horrified. "Little Benjy Fenwick? We made fun of him, just last night! He can't be dead!"

"Who killed him?" Sirius asked.

"Bellatrix Lestrange," the answer comes. "_Very _nasty curse. We can only find... bits of him."

Sirius thinks he's going to be sick. Literally. He swallows, a terrible expression on his face. James pats him awkwardly. "I'm _so _going to kill her next time," Sirius whispers. "She's _mine. _I'll show her what 'family honor' really means, the-" He tries to get to his feet, and now he really can feel his side, and it's not good. The world tilts and Will reaches out and stops him from falling.

"St. Mungo's for you, Sirius," he insists.

Dorcas notices him for the first time. "Who in Merlin's Beard is _he?!!" _she asks in bewilderment. "Battlefields are no places for children-"

Will sighs. "Oh, god, not this again," he says. "I've had enough of it already. Please, Ms. Meadowes, could we discuss this in a more secure location?" He has a businesslike tone to match hers, strange coming from what appears to be an ordinary fourteen-year-old.

Dorcas looks rather taken aback. Sirius can sympathize. Will confuses most people he comes across. "Certainly not! Where are your parents?"

Will turned to James. "She's never going to come around, is she?"

James grins. "No, mate, 'fraid not."

The boy turns back to Dorcas. "Sorry about this," he says, his tone of voice unusually gentle. He spreads his fingers wide. "Forget," he says softly. "Forget." Dorcas' face goes blank.

"I _hate _it when you do that," Sirius grumbles. "It's _creepy._"

"Just Obliviation, really," Will replies. He turns back to the hypnotized woman. "I am not here," he says. "You never saw me. I don't exist. You'd better go and check on Edgar." Slowly he lets his fingers drop, one by one. Dorcas blinks, then turns and walks away.

"Why do you do that weird finger thing anyway?" James asks. "Why not just snap?"

Will's face grows serious, his voice grave. "Ah, you see, that is one of the ways we tell the agents of the Dark from those of the Light. All Dark minions are instructed to snap their fingers when brainwashing someone. The Warriors of the Light drew the short straw, so they have to do the weird Star Trek finger-thingy."

James and Sirius burst into laughter. Sirius is always startled by Will's surprising capacity, sometimes, for the most irreverent humor. Maybe it's just gallows satire, but it makes him a bit more human, and for that Sirius is grateful.

Will tilts his head back and stares up at the stars, his brief expression of good humor replaced by an alien, incomprehensible look. There is something terribly ancient in that young face, ancient and sad. "I wonder..." he says quietly.

"Wonder what?" Sirius asks in a low voice, hardly daring to breathe.

Will turns those fathomless eyes on him, and suddenly he is aware of emotions he didn't even know applied to this slender figure: fear and doubt. "Merriman..." the boy says to himself. "Am I doing the right thing?"

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	2. Chapter 2

Another chapter up. Same disclaimers.

Will rang the doorbell. His mother opened it. "Will!!!" she exclaimed. "Where have you been! We were so worried-"

Will cut her off with a snap of the fingers and a word. "Forget." Then he closed the door and walked back down the street. Rain poured down around him, soaking him to the bone. He shivered. I should wear a coat, he thought unenthusiastically. I may be immortal, but I can still get pneumonia.

Will turned the corner and slipped on the wet sidewalk. A passing car drenched him in spray. "Perfect," he muttered, picking himself up. "Just perfect."

He looked up and down. The street seemed deserted. Will leaned against the wall of a stone building, despair filling him. Oh, Merriman, why did you have to leave? he thought once again. I can't deal with this on my own. And why did you not tell me about the wizards? If you knew Albus Dumbledore you must have known about his world. Why didn't you prepare me for this?

Somehow he had to stop Lord Voldemort. But how? Voldemort's powers were so different from his own.

Once again he marveled that he had not known about the hidden world of wizards and witches going on all around him. He had bought quite a few magical history books and had found quite a few occasions where famous witches and wizards, including the founders of Hogwarts, had met someone who must have been Merriman. Apparently the wizards viewed him as the founder of the wizarding world. How come there was nothing in the Book of Gramarye about them? He had too many questions and not enough answers.

A black shadow moved in the darkness of the narrow street as Will's Old One senses warned him. He spun around and faced a huge black dog. No- not a dog. It was somehow a shape-shifting being. But as far as Will knew, only Lords of the Dark could do that, and this being did not seem Dark. "Who are you? Reveal yourself!" he commanded.

The dog whimpered in confusion, then transformed into a puzzled-looking handsome young man with manga-style black hair and dark eyes. "How did you know?" he asked, confused.

Will took a step back. "You're a wizard, aren't you?"

"Of course I am. Animagus, in fact." He paused, remembering that he was an _illegal _Animagus, who should not go about revealing himself to strangers. His eyes narrowed. "Who are you?"

Will looked down. "I can't tell you. What are you doing in muggle London?"

The young man looked even more confused. "Actually, I'm looking for my friend Remus Lupin. Have you seen him?" The kid probably hadn't, but the English wizard community was rather small, only a couple thousand people, and the London population even smaller, so there was a good chance.

Will did not believe in coincidences. "Remus? I met him in Diagon Alley earlier today. He might still be there, Mr…?"

"Black."

Will started. "What?!"

Now he looked alarmed. "Sirius Black. What's wrong?"

"Oh… nothing." Now that he looked closely, he could see many resemblances between him and the Death Eater this morning.

"I'm sorry," said Will. "You just... startled me. I… I guess I'd better find Remus then."

"How… how are you going to do that?" Sirius asked. Will didn't answer, but concentrated on Remus, mentally scrying for him.

"He's at an apartment in north London."

Sirius stared at him. "How did you do that?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you."

Sirius looked at him shrewdly. There's more to you than meets the eye. But… you can't be more than thirteen. Oh well. I'd better go then. It sounds like he's at my apartment."

"Wait."

Sirius peered down at Will irritably. "What?"

"I'm coming."

"Come off it. You're too young to Apparate, I can't do Side-Along Apparation, and your parents are doubtless looking for you."

Will smiled slightly. "Don't worry."

"What?" Sirius asked, then, seeing an answer was not forthcoming, Disapparated.

When he Apparated in his apartment, Will was next to him. Sirius gaped.

"H-how?" he said, dumbfounded.

"Remus is in the kitchen," Will replied serenely.

Shaking his head in befuddlement, Sirius went into the kitchen, where Remus and James were cooking dinner. "Oh hello Sirius," James said unconcernedly.

"This is MY apartment, you jerks!"

"So?"

"So next time ask permission before coming over?"

"Sorry," James said, clearly not meaning it.

Will trailed into the room. "Hello," he said calmly. "Who might you be?"

"Will?!" Remus said, confused. "What is he doing here?" he asked Sirius.

Sirius shrugged. "Don't ask me, he just tagged along. I don't even know his name."

Remus stared hard at Will. "Mind telling me who you really are, Will?"

"Actually, yes," Will said apologetically. "Sorry."


	3. Chapter 3

**I still don't own The Dark Is Rising or Harry Potter. Please review.**

Albus Dumbledore was in his office, doing paperwork and humming a tune. Fawkes snored on his perch, along with the many portraits of previous headmasters. Albus felt at piece with the world. So it was perhaps inevitable that the owl took that moment to tap on the frosted window. Albus sighed and got up with a groan, walked over to the window and opened it. The barn owl swooped in, bringing cool night air and the smell of the forest with it. It stuck out its leg for Albus to take the message attatched there. He gently took the parchment and unrolled it. His good mood vanished immediately. Frowning, he re-read it, then crumpled it in his hand and collapsed in his comfortable chair. Another Death Eater attack. Albus felt the familiar wave of guilt. If only he'd seen Tom Riddle as the monster he was!-

-but no use thinking about that now.

Another melodious hoot was heard, and another owl swept through the open window with a soft whumph of displaced air. A snowy owl, belonging, if Albus was not mistaken, to James Potter, one of Albus' old students. Hoping for good news, Albus unrolled the message. It was very curious.

_Dear Dumbledore, _(the message began)_  
__It's me, James. Something weird's come up. There's this totally weird kid called Will, says he needs to talk to you. He's about thirteen. Weird thing is- he somehow Apparated after Sirius. And he found where Remus was without a finding charm or even a wand. I don't think he has a wand. He doesn't seem to be a wizard, but he's no kind of Muggle I ever heard of. Enclosed is his letter to you- he said you'd want to see him after you read it. Please RSVP- things are really freaky here. _

Albus frowned. Curiouser and curiouser. Who was this Will? Who could he be? He unfolded the scrap of parchment taped to James' letter, and stared. No thirteen-year-old child he new had handwriting like that. Not elegant, flowing script like this message. Not that it was much of a message. Just four words.

_Merriman Lyon Old Ones_

Albus stared some more. Then, slowly, he put down the letter. He stared at nothing for a few minutes, then, lost in thought, he went to a hidden cabinet and took out a basin filled with a silvery substance. He touched his wand to his temples and drew out a silver stream of memory, swirling it in the basin. A face surfaced, an ageless man with white hair, a beak of a nose, and bright, beady eyes. Albus swirled the Penseive a few minutes more, then sat back down to compose his reply.

"Would someone please inform me what is going on?"

"Look, James, I don't know either." Remus sighed. The past few hours had given him a headache. Will had vanished fifteen minutes ago to some unknown place, and since then the three friends had been discussing the mysterious teenager, without much success. Remus, being the intellectual of the group(not that the other two weren't the cleverest, most insufferable know-it-alls in Hogwarts during their school days, they were just too lazy/silly/cool to read much) had been consulted as an authority on all things. Tiredly he glanced at his watch. This was no ordinary watch- it had time, date, room temperature and short memos. He started.

"Good God," he said, "it's almost Christmas!"

"Tommorrow's my birthday," said a soft voice behind him. Will was standing there, a queer expression on his face. Then again, Will was always queer.

"How old are you, anyway?" Sirius asked curiously.

The flicker of expression again. "Fourteen tomorrow."

"Look, who are you?" Remus asked for the billionth time that evening.

Will ran his hands through his hair. "I... I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell you... but maybe... I don't know, I'm too young..." he muttered. "You probably wouldn't believe me anyway, and even if you did I have a lot of enemies. I'm not sure..."

"Believe me, mate," Remus said heartily, "I've known Sirius Black and James Potter for nine years, and there's not a lot I wouldn't believe."

Sirius frowned, trying to work out whether or not he had just been insulted.

Will rubbed his eyes. "Okay," he said. "But seriously... you're _really_ not going to believe me..."

"So you're saying, you're saying you knew Merlin?" James' voice was high-pitched and squeaky.

" I didn't _know_ him," Will said patiently. "I don't think anyone _can_ know him. Except the Lady- but I shouldn't get sidetracked. I met him, yes. Worked with him. Talked to him. I _told_ you you wouldn't believe me."

Sirius looked at Will, so calm and tranquil, so unchildlike. "The crazy thing is, I think I do believe you," he said. "That's what has me worried."  
"And Dumbledore's met him too?"

Will nodded. "I think so. Merriman mentioned him to me once." For a moment he was a young boy again. "I can't believe he didn't tell me about the wizarding world! It seems like the sort of thing I should know about, if I'm to be the eternal Guardian of the Light! And my Old One memories don't tell me a thing! How am I supposed to deal with this 'Voldemort' person!" He rolled his eyes when the three flinched. "And you shouldn't be so frightened of a mere name. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself, and there's more than enough fear around here at the moment."

James stared. "You sounded just like Dumbledore when you said that!" he accused. "He's always saying that."

Will grinned wryly. "Sorry. I can't help it. It's my immortal Guardian of Light side. We're not allowed to talk without spouting wise sayings every few minutes."

"But…" Remus stuttered, "but Merlin practically founded the wizarding race! He must have died centuries ago!"

"I told you, we're immortal. Although I've never tested it. It's generally best not to tempt fate."

"And you want to help us?" Sirius asked, peering at Will intently. "Why? What's in it for you?"

"I'd be saving people's lives," Will snapped back. "Isn't that enough?"

"Well, yeah, but… I mean, they're not _your_ people. I mean, I know tons of muggles are dying in Africa and stuff, but I don't go rushing off to save _them_."

Will said, "Ever since we defeated the Dark last year, I've been thinking about things. It's kind of like those stupid Superman comics some people started making recently. I have power, and I should use it to help others. As a muggle, I can't do much- as far as they're concerned I'm a minor."

Remus shook his head. "You _are_ a minor. You shouldn't be trying to duel You-Know-Who."

Will smiled slightly. "Can ordinary minors do this?" He snapped his fingers.

The wood in the grate burst into roaring, hungry flames.

The three stared, stupefied. James found his voice first. "That's impossible! You don't even have a wand!"

"I don't _need_ one, Mr. Potter."

Suddenly Sirius remembered something. "We should tell Wormtail!"

Will shook his head. "No. Don't tell anyone. My best weapon is Lord Voldemort's ignorance. I trust you. I know you are of the Light. I can see your auras."

Sirius cried, "I'd trust Peter with my life!"

"Still, he might let something slip, in carelessness or fear."

James looked at Will, the teenager's face half in shadow, a sharp keenness about him. "You really _aren't _human, are you."

His eyes grew sad. "I wish I was."

James got up. "Well, you can't stop me telling Lily. She's my fiancé."

"Fine. And now, gentlemen, I must depart…"

He vanished unceremoniously.

"I really hate it when he does that…" Sirius muttered.

**Ha! Will is Superman! Mwah ha ha… how I do torment these poor characters… And how come sometimes he sounds like Artemis? It's a pain, writing Old One dialogue… if you're not careful he comes out sounding like a child genius.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Fourth installment of my amazing epic! All hail me as the Queen of Writers! Haha, just kidding. I don't own anything but my portrayal of the characters, and any OC's I happen to create.**

Will was a bit worried about his family. What if someone he hadn't enchanted asked after their youngest son? Finally, he hit on a solution.

He walked into the kitchen and snapped his fingers under his mother's nose. "Remember."

She blinked. "Why, Will, how nice to see you up this early! Did you get a good night's sleep?"

"Yep," Will replied, glad he'd changed out of his wet things into pajamas. He resisted the urge to yawn and rub his eyes. Apparently Old Ones needed their sleep too.

"What would you like for breakfast?"

Hmm. Will thought about it, and realized he was craving... pancakes. "Pancakes, Mum."

"Sure. It'll take about half an hour, though," she replied, opening the fridge and taking out a carton of eggs.

"I can wait."

While she made the pancakes they chatted about small things.

"The others not up yet?"

"No. After all, they're teenagers. What do you expect?"

"Hey, I'm a teenager too!"

"Oh yes. The seventh son of a seventh son. I feel so old."

"You're not old, Mum."

The pancakes tasted delicious, with liberal amounts of honey poured over them.

"Mum?"

"Yes, dearest?"

"Cole's asked me over for the weekend, Mum. Can I go?"

She thought it over. "I don't see why not. Do I need to drop you off at his house?"

"Nah, I'm going to go home with him after school today."

"My, you have it all planned out."

"I think ahead, Mum."

His mother laughed. "You're so serious, Will. So responsible. You don't have to be, you know. Teenagers can have fun too."

He stared at his orange juice. "I guess."

Sirius Black stared morosely into the fire. As usual, James and Remus had totally trashed his apartment. He sighed. Perhaps last night had just been a dream.

Suddenly the flames sparked and turned green. Professor Dumbledore's face appeared in the fire. He did not look very happy. Sirius started. He had never seen Professor Dumbledore look confused or frightened before.

"Sirius!"

"Y-yes, Professor Dumbledore?"

"Where is that boy Will?"

"Er-"

Dumbledore sighed. "You don't know, do you."

"He just vanished! How could I tell where he went?"

"Did he... tell you anything about himself?"

Sirius hesitated. "He told us some sort of fantastic story about Merlin. Said he worked with him, or something like that. Something about old guys."

Dumbledore groaned. "Oh dear..."

Sirius became agitated. "Look, Dumbledore, it wasn't _true_, was it? He just made it up, right?"

The ancient professor shook his bearded old face. "I'm afraid not, Sirius."

Sirius felt like he had just been slammed against a brick wall. "It's _true?!!!_"

Dumbledore nodded. "I'm afraid so."

"And he's going to go fight You-Know-Who?"

His old headmaster blinked. "What?"

"Well, he said..."

"I must talk to this Will at once. Call me the instant he returns."

"Um, sure, Professor."

Dumbledore's face vanished, and the orange flames crackled once more.

Sirius felt very confused.

Lily was anxious, waiting for James. The streets weren't safe anymore. She felt the heaviness in her heart lift as she heard the doorbell ring.

"James?"

"Hi, Lily." He sounded a bit dazed. "Um, my favorite socks are orange."

"My favorite flowers are chrysanthemums," Lily answered, and opened the door, hugging her fiance. "Quiet, my parents and little sister are asleep."

"They don't mind a wizard visiting?" Lily's parents were muggles.

"No, they really like you. Well, except for Petunia. She hates you." Lily shrugged. "Little sisters can be so annoying."

"Look, Lily, I have something to tell you."

"Me too!"

"Okay, you go first."

"There's an Order meeting tomorrow night!"

"Oh, okay..." He sounded subdued. She wondered why. He had always seemed very excited about being in the secret Order of the Pheonix.

"Hey, so what did you want to tell me?"

He shook his head. "Maybe it should wait till the meeting, so everyone can know."

"Fine, be that way," she taunted playfully.

**See, L'Ananda? Order of the _Pheonix. _Not _Merlin._**

**Please review, I love your input.**


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